Maternity Leave Rights



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Maternity Leave Rights

	Maternity Leave Rights As a pregnant women, you have certain rights and benefits at work. These will however depend on your circumstance and national insurance contributions. As of the 6th April 2003, there are simplified rights for maternity leave. The following articles provide some basic guidance, however, we recommend you seek more professional advice for further details should you need it.

Notice Period required from employees You must inform your employer that you wish to take maternity leave by the end of the 15th week before your EWC, unless this is not reasonably practicable. You must let them know that you are pregnant, what week the baby is expected to be born and when you want to start your maternity leave. You can change your mind about when you wish to start your leave, but you must let your employer know at least 28 days in advance (unless this is not reasonably practicable). Your employer is required to respond to your notification within 28 days (unless this date has been varied, in which case, your employer must respond within 28 days of the start of maternity leave). The employer must write to you, setting out the date when you are expected to return to work. The earliest date that you are able to start your leave is the beginning of the 11th week before the baby is due. The latest date of commencement for leave is the day after the date of birth.

Length of maternity leave You are entitled to 26 weeks ordinary maternity leave, regardless of the length you have worked at the company. If you have completed the 26 continuous weeks with your employer by the beginning of the 14th week before your EWC, you can take additional maternity leave. This will start straight after ordinary leave and continues for a further 26 weeks. Additional leave is usually unpaid although some women may have contractual rights to pay. The maximum ordinary maternity leave is 26 weeks and the maximum additional maternity leave is 26 weeks.

Returning to work after maternity leave An employer has no provision to write to you before the end of your ordinary maternity leave asking when the child was born and whether you intend to return to work after your additional leave. This means that if you intend to return to work at the end of the full entitlement, you do not need to give further notification to your employer. If you wish to return to work before the end of the maternity leave, you need to give your employer 28 days notice of the date you wish to return.

Sickness Maternity leave starts automatically if you are absent from work for a pregnancy related illness during the 4 weeks before the start of your EWC, regardless of what you have already told your employer about your start date.

Statutory Maternity Pay and Maternity Allowance - The length of time covered by SMP or MA and the amount paid have been changed by the Department for Work and Pensions. - Women who are entitled to SMP or MA receive it for 26 weeks. - Women who are entitled to SMP or MA who give birth prematurely, are entitled to receive it for 26 weeks. - The standard rate for SMP and MA is £106 per week (or 90% of the women's average weekly earnings if this is less than £106 per week). This increase was made effective in April 2005. The earnings-related SMP (905) applies for the first 6 weeks of the pay period. So if you are eligible you will get: - SMP worth 90% of their earnings for 6 weeks, followed by 20 weeks at £106 (or 90% of earnings for the full 26 weeks if this is less than £106 per week) OR - MA from the local Jobcentre Plus / social security office worth £106 per week for 26 weeks (or 90% of your earnings for 26 weeks if less than £106 per week).

Where to find additional or further information: - Local Benefits Office or the Citizens Advice Buraeu - Your employer - HR department, trade union - Tiger - To check your own maternity rights, a great site to use is Tiger. This is an interactive website which covers both the existing and the new rights. There is also an interactive calendar to help with planning leave and a form to help with notifying employers about maternity leave intentions. - DTI - To find out the latest changes to you right, please take this link to a basic summary, supplied by the DTI.